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You are here: MacNN Forums > Community > MacNN Lounge > customer service isn't what it used to be: part 2

customer service isn't what it used to be: part 2
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brassplayersrock²
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Feb 28, 2009, 02:21 AM
 
I ordered a pizza tonight, and a hour later it hadn't come yet, so i called, they said they voided the order because when they called me i never picked up.

i never received a call from them, and i checked my phone history, and no calls.

the guy who picked up at the pizza place said that the person at the door said that they didnt order a pizza.

thing is, i live in a dorm, and the person at the door is a security guard.

i talked with the guard (a friend of mine) and he said that no pizza person had come

and so i ask for a refund because obviously the people are lying

they said, since they made the pie and i wasnt there to pick it up, and hadn't picked up the calls "they made" that it'd be a waste for them, so no refund.

that made me upset

my security guard had an idea and he called a police officer that he knows, and when he came we (the police officer and I) went over to the pizza place, and after arguing with the manager and the delivery guy, the officer almost arrested the owner and the delivery person for theft.

the manager got a ticket for disrupting the peace.

i got my money back

That was my night.
     
RhymesWithOrange
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Feb 28, 2009, 03:00 AM
 
Hmmmm? I never paid for a pizza till it came to my door.

     
brassplayersrock²  (op)
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Feb 28, 2009, 03:14 AM
 
lots of places won't even come unless you pay first.
     
goMac
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Feb 28, 2009, 03:20 AM
 
All the pizza places around here need you to sign before they can charge you, and you can't sign until they get to your door...
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vcutag
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Feb 28, 2009, 12:11 PM
 
Originally Posted by brassplayersrock² View Post
lots of places won't even come unless you pay first.
So they don't do COD?
     
Jawbone54
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Feb 28, 2009, 12:39 PM
 
Was it a major chain or a local pizza place?
     
turtle777
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Feb 28, 2009, 01:06 PM
 
Ahh, that kind of stuff doesn't worry me a bit.

I pay with Amex, if the stuff doesn't show up, I'll dispute the charge online and get my money back ASAP.

Amex is just the best thing since sliced bread.
For instance, their free Purchase Protection plan: if *anything* happens to your purchse in the first 3 months, even if it's your own dumb self damaging it, they'll give you a refund.
So, bought my wife an expensive pan, and she used the wrong cleaner on it. Result: the coating is completely toast, pan is dead.
Called Amex, within two minutes, I got my money back in full, credited to my account.

I LOVE AMEX.

-t
     
Maflynn
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Feb 28, 2009, 01:09 PM
 
I never heard of paying before getting it delivered, its COD where I live.

Perhaps because the restaurant you bought from got burned so many times from college kids crank calling in orders.
~Mike
     
Cold Warrior
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Feb 28, 2009, 01:15 PM
 
If they couldn't reach you then they shouldn't have even made it. That's standard practice because that's the reason you call the customer to begin with. It was their fault all around. And anyone doing business at a campus should be very familiar with buildings, rooms, etc., or they shouldn't do business there.
     
Captain Obvious
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Feb 28, 2009, 02:19 PM
 
It sounds like they are taking advantage of the stupidity of students.

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brassplayersrock²  (op)
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Feb 28, 2009, 03:41 PM
 
It's a local pizza place. Only two stores exist, one in Boston and one in Alston. I don't want to name the place just in case. Anyways, I won't be ordering from them again, that's for sure.

C.O: I'd actually have to agree with you in a way. They were obviously trying to scam me, and I bet they weren't expecting me to come by with a cop to get my money back, and getting issued a ticket for disrupting the peace; on top of almost getting arrested for theft.

I'd be interested in hearing if anyone else will be having anymore problems.
     
OreoCookie
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Mar 1, 2009, 07:36 AM
 
Talking of customer service … my friends and I walked out of a restaurant last night for the first time in my life. My sister and I wanted to celebrate our birthday together with some friends (about 13). My sister reserved for 20 in an Afghan restaurant we wanted to try, but 5 cancelled last minute. No biggie, my sister told the waiter when she arrived and they separated off one of the tables (we had three altogether, three seats vacant).

Some friends of mine had to work and we knew they'd come an hour later. So I wanted to order some entrees, but the waiter said `I can't order food right now, I'd have to wait for the drinks.' Oookay. So well, let's order some drinks. (There were three mix ups with drinks, but we were good guests and took the excess drinks anyway.) 45 minutes later, I was allowed to order my entrees. I wanted to order something small, because I believed we'd order our main dish soon. The waiter said, no, no, you can't take that. That's not going to be enough. I'll put something together. And off he went. The entrees were damn good. So, now, two-and-a-half hours after we've arrived, the waiter got ready to take our orders for food. He made us memorize the numbers of our dishes (which were not on the menu) and disappeared. Then he returned and asked who has reserved. I pointed to my sister and then he starts his rant. What she thinks, she stole tables at the best time of the week and now three guests (dared) haven't order a main course. What she thinks she is doing and that he will add three (imaginary) meals to the bill just to make up for the losses. The whole restaurant was hearing all this -- in addition to our guests, of course. Another friend (also a woman) then gets ticked off and tells her side of the story. Since I'm the second host and `the male', I take over. He then goes on to threaten that the `kitchen will think about whether to prepare our meals.' I try to stay calm and explain to him that we have space for 18 people at most, we're consuming plenty of drinks, we've ordered a big round of appetizers, etc. No use. He disappears. I quickly talk to my sister and obviously we both want to go. So I asked for the cheque and told him not to bother with our main dishes. Found out he charged triple of what I wanted to initially order for the appetizers (75 € instead of 25 €). Nice. We didn't leave any tip and paid only exactly what we've ordered.

We walked out and went to another bar. What the eff is wrong with some people? I have never heard of insulting and intimidating customers as a successful business strategy.
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Doofy
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Mar 1, 2009, 08:01 AM
 
Happy birthday.

Originally Posted by OreoCookie View Post
Then he returned and asked who has reserved. I pointed to my sister and then he starts his rant.
This is the point at which you should have asked for the manager and had the waiter horsewhipped, etc., etc..

Originally Posted by OreoCookie View Post
He then goes on to threaten that the `kitchen will think about whether to prepare our meals.
And that would almost certainly have generated a "well stick it up your arse then" from me.
Been inclined to wander... off the beaten track.
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OreoCookie
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Mar 1, 2009, 08:17 AM
 
Originally Posted by Doofy View Post
This is the point at which you should have asked for the manager and had the waiter horsewhipped, etc., etc..
We were talking to the owner
Can't believe the place is always packed.
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Doofy
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Mar 1, 2009, 08:30 AM
 
Originally Posted by OreoCookie View Post
We were talking to the owner


I guess all that remains to be said is:

Originally Posted by OreoCookie
What the eff is wrong with some people?
Been inclined to wander... off the beaten track.
That's where there's thunder... and the wind shouts back.
     
OreoCookie
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Mar 1, 2009, 08:43 AM
 
Meanwhile, I've checked the web and it seems we weren't the only ones. The place has reviews that range from stellar to close to our experience. Always looked nice and packed from the outside.
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ghporter
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Mar 1, 2009, 12:25 PM
 
Between school buildings and military dormitories (both as a resident and as a supervisor), I've yet to see a pizza place that didn't have a detailed map to all such structures for each and every delivery driver; these places tend to make up the bulk of local shops' income, and messing with students is a good way to go out of business-word travels fast. On the other hand, I've seen plenty of incidents where a student wound up a few bucks short and the presence of his fellows made it easy to make up the difference, with the forfeiture of a slice or two for the extra cash, of course.

In Austin, there are a couple of really great pizza places just across the street from the main campus of UT, and they do a booming business, either with delivery or dining in. Doing right by a large student population is just good business for a pizza shop.

Glenn -----OTR/L, MOT, Tx
     
Shaddim
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Mar 1, 2009, 09:57 PM
 
Originally Posted by Doofy View Post


I guess all that remains to be said is:
You say, "**** you, and the carpet you rode in on!"


We frequent a local Thai eatery and the owner can be an ass. The second time we went there he and I got into a shouting match over him verbally abusing his waitress (made her cry). Within 5 minutes we were shoving each other, 20 minutes after that we were quickly getting drunk together. Yeah, he did apologize to the girl (and me), and for the rest of the night we kept telling her jokes and making funny faces so that she'd laugh. We go there every couple weeks now, and Sarra always takes them flowers.

Sometimes, you just have to be a jerk right back at them. It doesn't always work, but at least it can be entertaining.
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sdilley14
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Mar 1, 2009, 10:03 PM
 
Originally Posted by brassplayersrock² View Post
I ordered a pizza tonight, and a hour later it hadn't come yet, so i called, they said they voided the order because when they called me i never picked up.

i never received a call from them, and i checked my phone history, and no calls.

the guy who picked up at the pizza place said that the person at the door said that they didnt order a pizza.

thing is, i live in a dorm, and the person at the door is a security guard.

i talked with the guard (a friend of mine) and he said that no pizza person had come

and so i ask for a refund because obviously the people are lying

they said, since they made the pie and i wasnt there to pick it up, and hadn't picked up the calls "they made" that it'd be a waste for them, so no refund.

that made me upset

my security guard had an idea and he called a police officer that he knows, and when he came we (the police officer and I) went over to the pizza place, and after arguing with the manager and the delivery guy, the officer almost arrested the owner and the delivery person for theft.

the manager got a ticket for disrupting the peace.

i got my money back

That was my night.
Haha, nice! Good to see you got the situation rectified. It sucks that it has to go that far to solve a simple problem though. It makes me wonder why businesses risk their reputation by doing things like that. What's worse, forking over the 10-20$ that they didn't even earn in the first place, or having something like this happen and have your name drug through the mud which is obviously going to result in unsatisfied customers spreading the word about how they conduct business? Stupid, stupid, stupid.
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quesera
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Mar 1, 2009, 10:30 PM
 
Originally Posted by ghporter View Post
In Austin, there are a couple of really great pizza places just across the street from the main campus of UT...
Names please? We'll be going up soon and need some new places to try out.
     
tooki
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Mar 2, 2009, 02:12 AM
 
Originally Posted by OreoCookie View Post
... My sister reserved for 20 in an Afghan restaurant we wanted to try, but 5 cancelled last minute. [...]
We walked out and went to another bar. What the eff is wrong with some people? I have never heard of insulting and intimidating customers as a successful business strategy.
I had a similar experience at a friend's birthday party dinner at an Indian restaurant. I really suspect that the orient has entirely different expectations, and some restaurateurs from those cultures have trouble accepting that we treat eating out very differently.
     
OreoCookie
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Mar 2, 2009, 04:50 AM
 
I was tempted to tell him `Wir sind nicht auf dem Bazar hier!' but that struck me as slightly racist. On my birthday dinner, I don't want to be insulted by the guy in the restaurant, though
I don't suffer from insanity, I enjoy every minute of it.
     
turtle777
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Mar 2, 2009, 10:47 AM
 
Originally Posted by OreoCookie View Post
I was tempted to tell him `Wir sind nicht auf dem Bazar hier!' but that struck me as slightly racist. On my birthday dinner, I don't want to be insulted by the guy in the restaurant, though
I agree, "**** you, and the carpet you rode in on!" would have been less racist

-t
     
   
 
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